“Letters to Vivian” is my tribute to my Vivitar Ultra Wide & Slim, a simple toy camera that has been my valued travel companion. I chose to do the project with Vivian because I know her photos would be worth the wait.

Vivian is one of my staple cameras. I am always looking forward to shoot with her and see the world through her eyes, even if it means waiting weeks (or even months) to get my films processed. I am never discouraged by the fact that I won’t get to see her photos as soon as I take them; each day of waiting only builds up the anticipation!

As Vivian is a simple camera with fixed shutter speed and aperture, I can only take pictures outdoors on a bright, sunny day. Night shots, sunsets, or dramatic near-dusk shots were definitely out of the picture. So, to make interesting photos for the project, I decided to take a gamble and load her with a redscaled film. I was a little uneasy during the wait, but I was glad to see that some shots actually turned out nice!